Television

Sunday, August 11, 2013

DA charges defense attorney for letting client use cellphone

Bedford County, Pennsylvania District Attorney Bill Higgins said Thomas Crawford, a Pittsburgh defense attorney handed a cellphone to Michael Patrick Crawley at a May 1 Central Court hearing, a no, no according to the DA. Pennsylvania law counts providing phones to prisoners as a first-degree misdemeanor, reported the Altoona Mirror.

Because Crawley was waiting in a holding cell, Higgins said he counts as a prisoner. State law says it's illegal to give a cellphone not just to jail inmates but to those in detention facilities and mental hospitals, as well.

"That's not even illegal. It's Central Court," Crawley said. "It's the way I've done it a thousand times."
Central Court refers to the weekly roundup of preliminary hearings for Bedford County's accused, usually conducted at Magisterial District Judge Kathy Calhoun's Everett office.

Crawford said he handed Crawley the phone for just a moment, so the prisoner could tell his mother how his bail would be handled. Higgins said sheriff's deputies saw the exchange, grabbed the phone and returned it to Crawford before reporting the incident to prosecutors.

"The law applies to Mr. Crawford the same as it does everyone else," Higgins said Wednesday.

Higgins said such charges against lawyers are exceedingly rare, especially in Bedford County.
"Most attorneys comply with the law," he said, laughing. "Most attorneys have more respect for the law."

Higgins and Crawford share a bitter relationship, going back to at least 2008, when Crawford represented a woman who accused the district attorney of sexual assault. Those charges were later dismissed, but the two attorneys have sparred repeatedly in the courtroom since.

Higgins denied any suggestion that the cellphone charge was motivated by his feelings toward Crawford.

"It's just business. The guy broke the law; he's going to be punished," Higgins said.

Representatives at Calhoun's court office said they haven't yet mailed summons to Crawford's Pittsburgh address for a scheduled Sept. 18 hearing. Crawley has not been charged for possessing the phone, also a misdemeanor.

Crawford hadn't heard of the charges as of Wednesday, he said. "I guess Higgins wants to do something," he said. "Whatever."

About Matt

An analysis of crime and punishment from the perspective of a former prosecutor and current criminal justice practitioner.
The views expressed on this blog are solely those of the author and do not reflect the opinions or postions of any county, state or federal agency.